Transply selects branch locations based around their abilities toservice customers with same- or next-day deliveries. “We have adelivery fleet of vehicles and make daily deliveries, which nobodyis really doing anymore,” says Smith. “I think we do a lot of thingsthat people used to do that they don’t do anymore.”Case in point: All of Transply’s branches are stocking locations,and inventory for this company is more than just the fast movingcore products – “not just the current inventory,” says Smith, “butalso some of the oddball stuff the customer might be lookingfor.” Opening more branches helps justifythe stocking of some of the slower movingitems, but for Transply the key driver hereis customer service, an approach that comeswith good old fashioned bend-over-back-wards salespeople. “When you call Transply,a real person answers the phone,” explainsSmith. “You get an inside sales personwho can help you right away.” The core ofTransply’s inside sales group have fifteenyears of experience or more, and are trainedto the point where they can truly helpcustomers identify what they have and whatthey need. “We deal with a lot of mainte-nance people,” says Brian. “When main-tenance people call, they want to talk tosomebody who knows something. He wantsa product that’s going to fix his problem.”The knowledge base, combined with asmall company’s flexibility, has resulted in ateam of inside reps who can make decisionson the fly with a customer’s unique needsin mind. “We can make decisions on thephone,” says Harlacher. “We don’t need toask Dean or call ‘corporate.’ It makes it nicethat we have some flexibility here.”Transply’s outside sales force focuses onbeing a visible resource to their customersthrough knowledge of product and commit-ment to the customer’s needs. As the compa-ny looks to increase sales in its existing branches through growingits sales force, Transply is challenged to find the right talent. Basedon the great talent pool in inside sales, there is opportunity togrow from within. And when Transply hires from the outside, “Welook for good basic people,” says Dean. “Give me a farm boy andI’ll make a salesman out of him. They understand basic mechanics;they’ve got a work ethic… we’ve had good luck hiring from out-side the industry, rather than from competitors. You don’t have to‘un-teach’ people.”